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Common Core Apps

Top apps for tackling the new standards.

With the deadlines for new assess­­ment benchmarks fast approaching, the Common Core has been weighing heavily on the minds of educators across the nation. Fortunately, there are a number of new apps that can help your schools find ways to adapt curriculum to meet the standards and evaluate student progress. From the handy reference app CCL4s (Common Core Look-Fors), which enables educators to search the standards and record and share classroom observations, to Math Duel, a Core-aligned two-player game in which students work to achieve mastery through hands-on learning and customizable problem sets, these multigrade-level apps will ease the transition for students and educators alike as they tackle the Common Core.

6 Great Common Core Apps

Common Core K–6 Compare changes in each standard or search a glossary of key terms with this user-friendly reference app. Provides access to updated ELA and math standards. For iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. Free. learningunited.blogspot.com

Word Wizard Develop foundational ELA skills and build students’ vocabularies with the “Talking Movable Alphabet,” a program designed to pronounce and spell-check words and sentences. For iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. $2.99. lescapadou.com

Common Core Standards A reference guide to encourage greater understanding of the Common Core, this app places the Core standards at your fingertips. Search math and ELA standards by subject, grade, or category. For iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Android, and Windows 8. Free. masteryconnect.com

Murky Reef Pull students into informational texts using interactive game play. Elementary school students will learn about sharks, math, sentence structure, and more while inflating puffer fish and making an octopus squirt ink. For iPad. $4.99. frolyc.com

Common Core Tracker Use your digital gradebook to track student mastery and pinpoint areas and skills requiring further instruction. Users can align assignments with integrated Common Core and state standards. For iPad. $2.99. commoncoretracker.com

Splash Math From basic counting skills to metric conversions, there’s a Splash Math app for that. Apps for each grade level are Core-aligned and include a personalized learning feature that tracks student performance and organizes practice problems accordingly. For iPad. $9.99 each. studypadinc.com

STEVEN ANDERSON, director of instructional technology, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County (NC) Schools Math Core. “Teachers and parents can track their child's progress through the standards and create custom lesson plans. Students play various games and complete several different types of questions for mastery.” Free.

MINDY TILLEY, curriculum instructional specialist, Bradley Elementary, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas ScreenChomp. “Using features such as drawing, recording, and sharing, students can demonstrate the how, but more important the why, of a concept by illustrating and narrating their thought process.” Free.